On Sun, 25 Jan 2004 07:27:03 GMT, "Painius" wrote:

"The Noble Dane"...
and one of the greatest astronomers who ever lived.

Tyge Brahe (pron. BRAH-hay) (1546-1601) was best
known for his detailed observations of planetary orbits
(which led Kepler to his laws of planetary motion), the
observatory he built, and the many students of astronomy
he taught his unique observational skills to.

Tyge was also a fighter. He lost part of his nose in a duel
with another student at the University of Wittenberg in 1566,
and for the rest of his life he wore a metal insert over the
missing nose-part.
It was in gold!

And Did You Know?...

He had a love for alchemy that matched his love for the
science of astronomy. He was not a follower of the new
Copernican ideas because he did not want to give up
Aristotelian physics. However he did not totally follow the
ancient Ptolemaic system either. He devised his very own
system of orbital dynamics.

And Tyge Brahe gave frequent astrology nativities to
friends, acquaintances, and to two of his patron kings.
Regardless of what you may think of the practice of
astrology, it certainly put milk and bread on the baby's
table... then *and* now. I would wager that a significant
number of people who help to fund today's astronomical
and astronautical projects read their horoscopes daily.

Tycho Brahe died a few days after dining at the palace of
a friend. More concerned about etiquette and not leaving
the table before his host, Brahe drank too much and held
out too long to relieve himself. In the delirium of his final
night on Earth, the Tyge man chanted over and over...

"Let me not seem to have lived in vain.
Let me not seem to have lived in vain.
Let me not seem to have lived in vain.
Let me . . . "

I think he got his wish.

Good night!

Benoît Morrissette